The other night night, a group of friends and I had dinner at Restaurant Sorrel, a joint at the corner of St. Mark’s and Carlton in the heart of Brooklyn’s Prospect Heights. (I thought it was a new place, but turns out it’s been open for more than a little while. Who knew! Apparently not this Manhattanite…) And though there’s no shortage of decent chow in the neighborhood, Sorrel was definitely worth the trip. I went with a rather large group (I think there were 10 of us) and as far as I know, no one was disappointed.

The place is small, and the ambience is warm and inviting. Art hangs on the walls, though I’m not sure if they do changing exhibitions. We were greeted and seated immediately, even though it wound up taking all of the members of our group over an hour to arrive! (Obnoxious, I know.)

But it turned out to be a great place to sit and chat while we waited. The wine list is good and affordable, and the waiter suggested a few orders of their garlic and herb bread to tide us over. It was way too garlicky for me, but the garlic-lovers in our group were thrilled.

Anyway, the food was delicious. It’s all seasonal and market-based, so their menu changes pretty much every day. The main focus is a three-course, $25 prix fixe (definitely a bargain), though they do also have an a la carte section for those that want to go that way. I started with a beet salad, which was incredible, and moved on to a delicious, perfectly cooked striped bass filet. All of the flavors were just so…fresh and bright.

Dessert comes with the meal, and though I wasn’t really in the mood, what I had was light and delicious: thin slices of pear poached in white wine and ginger, and served over chocolate sauce. Yum.

So if you’re in Prospect Heights (which for some reason I always seem to be), I’d say Sorrel is definitely worth a stop.

[Photo: Carina Salvi, from here]

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